Citation Nr: 21072060 Decision Date: 12/02/21 Archive Date: 12/02/21 DOCKET NO. 18-25 735 DATE: December 2, 2021 ORDER Service connection for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is denied. FINDING OF FACT The Veteran does not have a mental disorder including PTSD that is related to active service. CONCLUSION OF LAW The criteria to establish service connection for PTSD have not been met. 38 U.S.C. § 1110; 38 C.F.R. §§ 3.303(d), 3.304(f). REASONS AND BASES FOR FINDING AND CONCLUSION The Veteran served on active duty in the U.S. Navy from February 1969 to May 1972. This matter comes before the Board of Veterans' Appeals (Board) on appeal from an October 2015 rating decision of the Manila, Philippines Regional Office (RO). In April 2021, the Veteran was afforded a videoconference hearing before the undersigned Veterans Law Judge (VLJ). During the hearing, the VLJ engaged in a colloquy with the Veteran toward substantiation of the claims. Bryant v. Shinseki, 23 Vet. App. 488, 496-97 (2010). A hearing transcript is in the record. Service Connection PTSD Service connection may be granted for a current disability arising from a disease or injury incurred in or aggravated by active service. 38 U.S.C. § 1110. Service connection may be granted for any disease diagnosed after discharge when all the evidence, including that pertinent to service, establishes that the disease was incurred in service. 38 C.F.R. § 3.303(d). Service connection generally requires (1) medical evidence of a current disability; (2) medical or, in certain circumstances, lay evidence of an in-service incurrence or aggravation of a disease or injury; and (3) medical evidence of a nexus between the claimed in-service disease or injury and the current disability. Shedden v. Principi, 381 F.3d 1163, 1167 (Fed. Cir. 2004). Service connection for PTSD requires medical evidence diagnosing the condition; a link, established by medical evidence, between current symptoms and an in-service stressor; and credible supporting evidence that the claimed in-service stressor occurred. 38 C.F.R. § 3.304(f). The Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition (DSM-V) is applicable because the Veteran's claim of service connection for PTSD was certified to the Board in June 2020. 79 Fed. Reg. 45,093, 45,094 (stating that the DSM-IV governs all applications for benefits certified to the Board prior to August 4, 2014). The Veteran asserts his PTSD resulted from several stressors during his service in the Republic of Vietnam. The claim will be denied because the Veteran does not have a diagnosis of PTSD. The report of separation from the armed forces (DD Form 214) reflects the Veteran's duty specialty as Boatswain's Mate and that the Veteran "served in Vietnam." The Veteran reported three stressors during his service in Vietnam: (1) aboard the USS Repose, a fellow service-member was tearing up the flight deck with a pick, lost control of the pick, and hit the Veteran in the face; (2) the Veteran had "thoughts of getting hit by an RPG (rocket-propelled grenade)" while aboard a slow-moving utility tug-boat after an ammo dump explosion in Vietnam; and (3) the Veteran moved frozen bodies of fellow service-members. Service treatment records (STRs) do not show complaints or contemporaneous reports pertaining to a psychiatric disorder. In the Veteran's May 1972 separation medical examination report, the service medical examiner noted no psychiatric abnormalities. The STRs are highly probative evidence because they were generated with the specific view of recording the events they describe. In this respect, they are akin to official records, which generally enjoy a high degree of probative value in the law. Rucker v. Brown, 10 Vet. App. 67, 73 (1997) (observing that although formal rules of evidence do not apply before the Board, recourse to the Federal Rules of Evidence may be appropriate if it assists in the articulation of the reasons for the Board's decision). In a December 2014 letter, a VA readjustment counseling therapist indicated that the Veteran was then-currently receiving "readjustment counseling services." However, there was no indication that the Veteran was diagnosed with PTSD or any other psychiatric disorder. During the July 2015 VA examination, the Veteran was diagnosed with PTSD under the DSM-V. The examiner indicated that the Veteran's stressor pertaining to an ammo dump explosion was not adequate to support a diagnosis of PTSD. In a July 2015 VA addendum, the VA examiner indicated that the initial VA examiner's diagnosis of PTSD was erroneous because the examiner did not meet with the Veteran, the Veteran's symptoms did not meet the criteria for a diagnosis of PTSD, and based on the information in the examination report, the examiner meant to check "no" for a diagnosis of PTSD. The VA addendum is adequate and highly probative because the examiner reviewed the Veteran's medical history, complaints, and clearly indicated that the Veteran did not have a diagnosis of PTSD. Barr v. Nicholson, 21 Vet. App. 303, 311 (2007). Statements dated July 2016 from the Veteran's friend and spouse pertain to the Veteran's claimed stressors but there was no indication that the Veteran was diagnosed with PTSD or any other psychiatric disorder. During the Veteran's April 2021 Board hearing, the Veteran did not indicate whether he was diagnosed with PTSD or any other acquired psychiatric disorder. In response to the VLJ's question of whether the Veteran was "diagnosed with PTSD," the Veteran's spouse testified "no." Additionally, in response to the VLJ's question of whether the Veteran was "diagnosed with any kind of depressive disorders or anxiety disorder or anything like that," the Veteran's spouse testified "no." VA and non-VA treatment records do not show a diagnosis of PTSD or any other acquired psychiatric disorder. The law is well settled that in the absence of proof of a current disability, there can be no valid claim. Boyer v. West, 210 F.3d 1351 (Fed. Cir. 2000); Brammer v. Derwinski, 3 Vet. App. 223 (1992). A preponderance of the evidence is against a finding that the Veteran has a diagnosis of PTSD or any other acquired psychiatric disorder. STRs do not show complaints or contemporaneous reports pertaining to a psychiatric disorder. The service medical examiner noted no psychiatric abnormalities at service separation. In the July 2015 VA addendum, the examiner indicated that the Veteran did not have a diagnosis of PTSD. VA and non-VA treatment records do not show a diagnosis of PTSD or any other acquired psychiatric disorder. (CONTINUED ON THE NEXT PAGE) During the Veteran's April 2021 Board hearing, the Veteran did not indicate having a psychiatric diagnosis and the Veteran's spouse testified that the Veteran did not have a diagnosis of PTSD or any other acquired psychiatric disorder. Therefore, service connection is not warranted, and the claim is denied. Vito A. Clementi Veterans Law Judge Board of Veterans' Appeals Attorney for the Board B. Cohen, Counsel The Board's action is binding only in this case. This decision is not precedential and does not establish VA policies or interpretations of general applicability. 38 C.F.R. § 20.1303.